Hot on the heels of PRS's entry into the T-style market, PJD's new York model certainly wasn't inspired by that launch. "No, this has literally been a guitar outline on my computer for about six years," smiles Leigh Dovey, the driving force behind PJD Guitars. "It was one of those things I kept coming back to, tweaking it and thinking, 'That's it!" But then the next day I'd be going, 'No, I'm not happy with that?' I tried different pickup configurations, visually, and then finally I got to the stage where I realised I was going to have to make one and see what it looked like.
"I didn't want to do the same thing again with a Gotoh hardtail bridge [like the existing models in the PJD range] and just a different body shape," Leigh continues, "because I've done that with the Carey then the St John. This had to be a different guitar. I hadn't done a T-style, but I've always liked them and I've owned a few. Quite a few people have said that our PJD headstock looks a bit like a T-style anyway and asked why we use that on the single-cut Carey. So I thought I'd build a body to match our headstock. I built one and loved the shape, how it looked, and how it felt really comfortable. I then needed some pickups.
"The first PJD pickups, the Dr Wallis set, were created for the Woodford Pioneer [an upmarket S-style made exclusively for Andertons], so the York's High Teas aren't the first. You might wonder why we'd bother with so many people making classic-style pickups out there. But I thought, 'Who knows our guitars better than us? Nobody.' So, now, when we build a new guitar we can build the pickups to match the guitar, its body wood, the neck, everything. We have Josh Parkin with us who makes the pickups. He's an incredible guitar builder in his own right- a genius! and really into making pickups."
Denne historien er fra September 2023-utgaven av Guitarist.
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Denne historien er fra September 2023-utgaven av Guitarist.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
BASIC INSTINCTS
The sophisticated range of Swedish-designed guitars made by .strandberg* has lured thousands of players over to the headless side. But the company's new stripped-back Boden Essential model is its strongest play yet for the hearts and minds of mainstream players
Second String
As PRS's more affordable USA-made S2 line moves into its second decade, the series gets a revamp with - at last - USA-made pickups and electronics. What took so long?
PABLO VAN DE POEL
When a band from The Netherlands describes themselves as 'raw, psychedelic Southern rock', it may take a little cognitive processing to work out what that might mean. One listen to DeWolff, however, and you will be duly transported to the 60s for some fuzzed-out rock 'n' roll
THE BERNIE MARSDEN COLLECTION
With a fabulous collection of the late Bernie Marsden's guitars, amps and other highly collectable music gear going under the auctioneer's hammer on 11 June, we were thrilled to have the chance of a sneak preview
LENNY KRAVITZ
Some 35 years since the release of his debut LP, for his 12th record, Blue Electric Light, Lenny Kravitz is back again with equal doses of vigour and vibes, using vintage guitars and the purest valve amps
GEORGE VJESTICA
You may not know him at first glance, but the work of Stoke-on-Trent native George Vjestica has probably impacted some of your favourite albums and movies
DICKEY BETTS
Emerging from the shadow of Duane to write signature hit Ramblin' Man, the Allman Brothers guitarist was a hard-living pioneer of Southern rock
NICK GUPPY
It is with great sadness that we report the passing of our highly valued amplifier guru, who died suddenly in April
Lucky Break
Alex Bishop blends old wood with new in an attempt to fix a severely damaged guitar headstock
Tones Behind The Tracks
Cedric Burnside learnt at the knee of his fabled grandfather, but his latest album is a hill country blues masterclass on his own terms